The manufacture, assembly, maintenance, modification and/or upgrade to an aircraft always requires the creation of tools used to make parts for the aircraft. This tooling is often machined from solid metal in order to ensure the surface quality, surface robustness and durability thereof. However, the preparation and construction of such metallic tooling can be costly and time-intensive. Additively manufactured polymer tooling can be manufactured much more quickly and inexpensively than tooling formed from metals, but the durability, surface quality and surface robustness of polymer-based tooling is a concern.
Accordingly, there is a need for an improved method of forming tooling which can be formed more quickly like additively formed polymer tooling and which also provides the surface quality, surface robustness and durability provided by metallic tooling.